Australian medical staff have been moved to safety on Manus Island after a security incident involving PNG agencies on Friday morning.

The Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Scott Morrison confirmed the international health and medical services staff at the detention centre had to be moved for their own safety but he refused to reveal what had happened.

Mr Morrison only revealed the information about the incident after being questioned about tweets from the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre reporting that employees were evacuated due to security concerns.

"There was an incident earlier today on Manus Island and appropriate steps were taken to ensure staff were placed in safety," Mr Morrison said.

The Immigration Minister refused to elaborate further saying it is a matter for the PNG government.

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Mr Morrison told reporters that the staff had been evacuated to a nearby naval vessel, but he was forced to put out a statement after the briefing saying he had been misinformed.

In the statement, he said he had since been told no staff had been removed to the HMAS Choules.